Phoenix Suns: 3 reasons Devin Booker’s extension was a no-brainer

1. He’s going to be a superstar

This is the main point of contention for NBA Twitter’s advanced stats, projections and opinions on Devin Booker. His teams haven’t won and his defense has been abhorrent, so those who weren’t forced to watch Suns basketball on a nightly basis wonder whether his numbers will ever contribute to winning basketball.

Devin Booker may not become the next Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade or James Harden, but considering the path he’s on, his career trajectory compares pretty damn well to some of the game’s all-time greats.

Okay, so maybe a 70-point performance doesn’t impress you because his team lost that game (a real indicator of how fun you may or may not be at parties, but I digress).

Maybe joining LeBron James and Kevin Durant in the 4,000-point club at such a young age doesn’t matter either, given the lack of firepower around him. Maybe it’s the same for trailing only Michael Jordan in points per game for a season before turning 22 years old.

That’s okay. Suns Twitter still has plenty more juicy tidbits to offer.

https://twitter.com/Suns/status/1026565278715469824

For starters, only Booker, LeBron James, Tracy McGrady and Michael Jordan have posted a 24-4-4 stat line in a season before turning 22 years old.

Throw out age and shift your focus to true shooting percentage, and the list of players in NBA history to post a 24-4-4 line with a 56.0 true shooting percentage is pretty much all future Hall-of-Famers:

If Booker manages to post that same kind of stat line in 2018-19, he’ll be the first player in NBA history to ever do so twice before turning 23 years old. He won’t turn 22 until six games into the upcoming season, giving him time to pass Tracy McGrady, Dwight Howard and Kobe Bryant for the fifth-most total points in NBA history before turning 22.

His stat line, compared to other NBA greats who have posted a similar stat line in any season of their careers, suggests a Hall of Fame track. His efficiency is bursting at the seams with elite potential, especially considering his immense workload he shouldered for an otherwise inept offense. And all of this is without considering his ability to perform in the clutch at the tender age of 21.

It’s easy to write off Booker’s statistical benchmarks as empty numbers on losing teams, but anyone who tuned in to watch the Suns play last year for more than five minutes can tell you how painful it was watching this team. With opponents doubling Booker, the Suns’ only offensive threat, it’s truly impressive he’s been able to post those numbers, even in a cascade of losses. It’s not just the numbers either; the eye test confirms he looks the part on a near-nightly basis.

Devin Booker was the only thing holding the 2017-18 Phoenix Suns together, because without him, that roster might have topped out as a 15-win team (which they technically were in their 28 games without him, going 5-23). The Suns ranked dead last in 3-point shooting, providing him no spacing to drive or score, and little relief in the assist column when he frequently found the open man only to watch the shot clank off the rim.

T.J. Warren missed 17 games, Jackson was a train wreck for the first half of the season, the point guard position was a revolving door all year and Booker’s had three different coaches in three seasons. And yet, he still posted 24.9 points, 4.7 assists and 4.5 rebounds a game while receiving the majority of opposing defenses’ attention — all at 21 years old.

The advanced stats don’t favor him right now because of the glaring lack of a supporting cast and how downright bad the Phoenix Suns have been. But if this young team starts grooming more star talent, it’d honestly be shocking if Devin Booker didn’t become one of the best scorers and all-around superstars in the NBA, making his contract perfectly sensible in the process.